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Creature of Habit: A self-report measure of habitual routines and automatic tendencies in everyday life

Published version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

Change log

Authors

Ersche, KD 
Lim, TV 
Ward, LHE 
Robbins, TW 

Abstract

Our daily lives involve high levels of repetition of activities within similar contexts. We buy the same foods from the same grocery store, cook with the same spices, and typically sit at the same place at the dinner table. However, when questioned about these routine activities, most of us barely remember the details of our actions. Habits are automatically triggered behaviours in which we engage without conscious awareness or deliberate control. Although habits help us to operate efficiently, breaking them requires great effort. We have developed a 27-item questionnaire to measure individual differences in habitual responding in everyday life. The Creature of Habit Scale (COHS) incorporates two aspects of the general concept of habits, namely routine behaviour and automatic responses. Both aspects of habitual behaviour were weakly correlated with underlying anxiety levels, but showed a more substantial difference in relation to goal-oriented motivation. We also observed that experiences of adversity during childhood increased self-reported automaticity, and this effect was further amplified in participants who also reported exposure to stimulant drugs. The COHS is a valid and reliable self-report measure of habits, which may prove useful in a number of contexts where discerning individuals' propensity for habit is beneficial.

Description

Keywords

Automaticity, Compulsivity, Daily routines, Eating, Questionnaire, Sensation-seeking, Stimulant drug exposure, Stress

Journal Title

Personality and Individual Differences

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0191-8869
1873-3549

Volume Title

116

Publisher

Elsevier
Sponsorship
British Academy (SG162310)
Medical Research Council (G0001354)
Medical Research Council (MR/J012084/1)
Medical Research Council (G1000183)
Wellcome Trust (104631/Z/14/Z)